Indoor personal relay

ABSTRACT

The embodiments herein disclose an indoor personal relay which has a wireless interface with the BS, which is effective in both cost and technology terms. The indoor personal relay, as disclosed herein is an estimate and forward relay. The relay  101  as disclosed herein does not perform any additional channel decoding/encoding on the data that it receives from the UE or BS. Embodiments disclosed herein enable the relevant UEs to have a high SINR link with the relay. This, in turn, translates to a better effective link quality between the UE and BS and higher indoor rates, which otherwise may have been not as good as a consequence of poor direct link between the UE and the BS. This relay is effectively transparent to the UE. The deployment of relays also implies minimal impact on UE IOT.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.13/699,641, filed on Jan. 11, 2013, which claims priority to PCTApplication No. PCT/IN2011/00362, filed on May 26, 2011, which furtherclaims priority to Indian Provisional Application No. 1445/CHE/2010filed on May 26, 2010, the contents of which in their entireties, areherein incorporated by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

This invention relates to wireless communication networks, and moreparticularly to capacity expansion in wireless communication networks.

BACKGROUND

From a cellular packet network perspective, significant efforts havebeen invested to solve issues primarily related to coverage extensionand capacity expansion. To serve the purpose of coverage extension,advanced wireless networks have been equipped with L3 relays (where dataforwarding involves layer 3) with intelligence and processing complexityequivalent to base stations. These entities support legacy user devicesand appear as base stations.

In order to resolve issues related to capacity expansion, the use offemto/pico/micro cells has also been proposed that essentiallyinterfaces with the core network through dedicated backhaul like wired(DSL or optical), wireless (microwave link) while maintaining the samewireless access interface with the UE as a BS.

However, the proposed femto/pico/micro cells have a back-end system toco-ordinate between the femto/pico/micro cells and the communicationnetwork, which may be a wired communication network. Though thisproposition is attractive in the context of rich wired infrastructurethat exists in more developed countries, it may neither be feasible norcost-effective to deploy these entities in their conventional form inless developed countries like India. This is because the existingdensity of wired connection is as low as 10 per 1000 person and lastmile problems are still persistent.

SUMMARY

In view of the foregoing, an embodiment herein provides a method toenable a relay to associate with a Base Station (BS) in a wirelesscommunication network, the method comprising of the relay searching fora best BS; the relay attaching to the best BS; the relay sending list ofClosed Subscriber Group (CSG) UEs to the BS; the BS checking if at leastone of the CSG UEs is attached to the BS; and the relay completingassociation procedure with the BS if at least one CSG UE is attached tothe BS. The method further comprises of the relay checking if apre-specified number of failed association attempts have been reached,if the best BS did not have at least one CSG UE attached to it or therelay cannot associate with the best BS; and the relay attempting toassociate with next best BS, if the pre-specified number of failedassociation attempts have not been reached. The method further comprisesof the relay powering down for a pre-specified time period after thepre-specified number of failed association attempts has been reached.The method further comprises of the relay associating with the best BSif no BS with at least one the CSG UE is found when the pre-specifiednumber of association attempts have been reached; the relay enteringinto idle mode; and the relay entering into active mode, on receiving amessage from the BS that at least one CSG UE is detected in vicinity ofthe relay. The method further comprises of the relay associating with aplurality of BSs if no BS with at least one the CSG UE is found when thepre-specified number of association attempts have been reached; therelay entering into idle mode; and the relay associating with one BSfrom the plurality of BSs, on receiving a message from the one BS thatat least one CSG UE is detected in vicinity of the relay. The BS mayassign a unique identifier to the relay, on the relay completingassociation procedure with the BS. The relay may register capabilitiesof the relay with the BS, on the relay completing association procedurewith the BS. The relay may be assigned with a network identifier, on therelay completing association procedure with the BS. The BS may send acontrol message to the relay instructing the relay to power down whenthe relay has not served any UEs for a specified period of time. The BSmay send a control message to the relay instructing the relay to powerdown when the relay is causing excessive interference. The relay maypower down when the relay detects that mobility level of the relay hascrossed a predefined threshold.

Also, disclosed herein is a method for enabling a User Equipment (UE)attached to a BS in a communication network to communicate with the BSvia a relay associated with the BS, the method comprising of the BaseStation (BS) checking if the UE is authorized to associate with therelay, on detecting the UE in coverage area of the relay, wherein the UEis associated with the BS; and the BS instructing the UE to performmeasurements on the relay; the BS instructing the relay to transmit asignal comprising of unique identifier of the relay and relevant systeminformation; the UE making measurements on basis of the signal receivedfrom the relay; the UE reporting the measurements to the BS; the BSdeciding if the relay meets criteria required to serve the UE, based onthe measurements received from the UE; and the BS associating the UEwith the relay, if the relay meets criteria required to serve the UE.The method further comprises of the BS informing the relay about the UE,on the BS deciding that the UE can be served by the relay; and the BSsharing UE-related information with the relay. The method furthercomprises of the relay sending information received from the BS to theUE, where the information is at least one of data or control signals andwhere destination of the received information is the UE; and the relaysending information received from the UE to the BS, where theinformation is at least one of data or control signals and wheredestination of the received information is the BS. The method furthercomprises of the relay converting the received information intobaseband; the relay performing channel estimation on the receivedinformation; the relay equalizing the information using the channelestimation; the relay making hard decisions on the equalizedinformation; the relay constructing frame using the at least one of theequalized information or the hard decisions; the relay generating pilotsand inserting the pilots in the frame; and the relay transmitting theframe. The relay making the hard decisions comprises of the relaydemodulating the equalized information; the relay descrambling thedemodulated information; the relay rescrambling the de-scrambledinformation using a scrambling sequence, wherein the BS informs therelay of the scrambling sequence; and the relay modulating the scrambledinformation. Alternatively, to avoid the de-scrambling and rescramblingsteps at the relay, the BS may select a scrambling sequence forscrambling the data before transmission of the data to the relaycorresponding to time instant when the relay forwards data to the UE.The generated pilots may be based on instructions from the BS. Thecriteria required for a UE to be associated with the relay comprises atleast one of radio link between the relay and the UE meeting a thresholdquality level; number of UEs attached to the relay not exceeding athreshold value; and link between the BS and the relay not beingoverloaded. The criteria required for the UE to be associated with therelay UE comprises of the UE being present in CSG of the relay. The BSmay control schedule of transmissions from the relay to the UE. The BSindicates resources that may be used for transmissions from the relay tothe UE; indicates resources that may not be used for transmissions fromthe relay to the UE; and indicates a set of resources, from which therelay may pick resources for transmissions from the relay to the UE. TheBS may send the indications periodically or aperiodically. The methodfurther comprises of the BS sending UE-specific information to the relayneeded to decode control information for the UE when the UE isassociated with the relay; and the relay decoding control informationsent by the BS to the UE, wherein the control information comprises ofdownlink resource allocation and uplink grant for the UE. The BS maycontrol power of transmissions between the relay and the UE. The processof BS controlling power of transmissions from the UE to the relaycomprises of the relay measuring transmit power of the UE; the relayreporting received power from the UE to the BS; the BS determining powerto be used on link between the UE and the relay; and the BS signallingpower level to the UE. The relay measures transmit power of the UE usingsounding channel. The transmit power specified by the BS for the relaymay be a range of power levels and the relay varies transmit power levelwithin the range. The BS may send control signals directly to the UE.

Disclosed herein is a method to enable a User Equipment (UE) to attachwith a BS in presence of relays, when the UE becomes active from idlemode or powers on, the method comprising of the UE measuring receivedsignal strengths from a plurality of BSs; the UE measuring receivedsignal strengths from at least one relay, when the at least one relayhas been instructed by their serving BS to transmit unique identifier ofthe relay, cell barring message and other system information; the UEchecking for cell barring message in the transmission; the UE does notattach with relays, on detecting cell-barring message in transmissionfrom the relays; and the UE attaching with one of the BS.

Disclosed herein is a method to enable a User Equipment (UE) to attachwith serving BS of a relay, when the UE becomes active from idle mode orpowers on, the method comprising of the UE measuring received signalstrengths from a plurality of BSs; the UE measuring received signalstrengths from at least one relay, when the at least one relay has beeninstructed by their serving BS to transmit unique identifier of therelay, list of blacklisted BSs, cell barring message and other systeminformation, where the list of blacklisted BSs includes all BSs exceptBS serving the relay; the UE not attempting to attach with any BSspresent in the list of blacklisted BSs or the relay; and the UEattempting to attach with BS serving the relay.

Disclosed herein is a method to enable a User Equipment (UE) attachedwith a BS to associate with a relay, the method comprising of the UEmaking measurements of signal strength of at least one relay andneighbouring BSs; the UE sending a report to BS to which the UE isattached, wherein the report comprises of the measurements of at leastone relay that can serve the UE; the BS finding best relay that can beused to serve the UE based on the report; the BS associating the UE withthe best relay, if the best relay is attached to the BS; the BSinstructing the UE to handover to a neighbouring BS, if the best relayis associated with the neighbouring BS; and the BS deciding to continueserving the UE directly if the best relay is not found. The criteria forBS to find the best relay for a UE comprises at least one of proximityof the UE to the relay; signal strength of link between the UE and therelay; signal strength of link between the relay and serving BS of therelay; number of UEs already associated with the relay; if the relay isCSG and the UE is in CSG list of the relay; and if Quality of Serviceparameters of the UE can be met while serving the UE through the relay.

Disclosed herein is a method to enable a relay to associate with a BaseStation (BS) in a wireless communication network, the method comprisingof the relay searching for best BS; the relay attaching to the BS; therelay sending list of Closed Subscriber Group (CSG) UEs of the relay tothe best BS; the best BS checks with neighbouring BS if at least one ofthe CSG UEs are attached with the neighbhouring BS, if the best BS findsthat none of the CSG UEs are attached to the best BS; and the best BSinstructing the relay to handover to a neighbouring BS, if oneneighbouring BS confirms presence of at least one CSG UE attached to theneighbouring BS and if other association criteria are satisfied. The BSmay assign a unique identifier to the relay, on the relay completingassociation procedure with the BS. The relay may register capabilitiesof the relay with the BS, on the relay completing association procedurewith the BS. The relay may be assigned with a network identifier, on therelay completing association procedure with the BS. The BS may send acontrol message to the relay instructing the relay to power down whenthe relay has not served any UEs for a specified period of time. The BSmay send a control message to the relay instructing the relay to powerdown when the relay is causing excessive interference. The relay maypower down when the relay detects that mobility level of the relay hascrossed a predefined threshold. The association criteria comprises atleast one of proximity of the CSG UE to the relay; signal strength oflink between the UE and the relay; quality of link between the relay andthe neighbouring BS; number of UEs associated with the relay; and ifQuality of Service parameters of the UE can be met while serving itthrough the relay.

Disclosed herein is a method for a BS to trigger a relay to transmitidentifier and other system information, the method comprising of the BSdetecting a UE that is authorized to connect to the relay in vicinity ofthe relay; and the BS instructing the relay to broadcast the uniqueidentifier and system information.

Disclosed herein is a method for a BS to trigger a relay to transmitunique identifier and other system information, the method comprising ofthe BS receiving a request for a scanning interval from a UE; the BSsending a measurement list to the UE which includes the relay; and theBS instructing the relay to broadcast the unique identifier and systeminformation.

Disclosed herein is a method for a BS to trigger a relay to transmitunique identifier and other system information, the method comprising ofthe BS instructing an attached UE to measure signal strength of a listof BS and relays which includes the relay; and the BS instructing therelay to broadcast the unique identifier and system information.

Disclosed herein is a method for a BS to trigger a relay to transmitunique identifier and other system information, the method comprising ofthe BS receiving a request from a neighbouring BS; and the BSinstructing the relay to broadcast the unique identifier and systeminformation.

Disclosed herein is a wireless communication network, the networkcomprising of at least one User Equipment (UE), at least one relay andat least one Base Station (BS), the network configured to enable therelay to search for a best BS; the relay to attach to the best BS; therelay to send list of Closed Subscriber Group (CSG) UEs to the BS; theBS to check if at least one of the CSG UEs is attached to the BS; andthe relay to complete association procedure with the BS if at least oneCSG UE is attached to the BS. The network is further configured toenable the relay to check if a pre-specified number of failedassociation attempts have been reached, if the best BS did not have atleast one CSG UE attached to it or the relay cannot associate with thebest BS; and the relay to attempt to associate with next best BS, if thepre-specified number of failed association attempts have not beenreached. The network is further configured to enable the relay to powerdown for a pre-specified time period after the pre-specified number offailed association attempts has been reached. The network is furtherconfigured to enable the relay to associate with the best BS if no BSwith at least one the CSG UE is found when the pre-specified number ofassociation attempts have been reached; the relay to enter into idlemode; and the relay entering into active mode, on receiving a messagefrom the BS that at least one CSG UE is detected in vicinity of therelay. The network is further configured to enable the relay toassociate with a plurality of BSs if no BS with at least one the CSG UEis found when the pre-specified number of association attempts have beenreached; the relay to enter into idle mode; and the relay to associatewith one BS from the plurality of BSs, on receiving a message from theone BS that at least one CSG UE is detected in vicinity of the relay.The network is further configured to enable the BS to assign a uniqueidentifier to the relay, on the relay completing association procedurewith the BS. The network is further configured to enable the relay toregister capabilities of the relay with the BS, on the relay completingassociation procedure with the BS. The network is further configured toenable the BS to assign a network identifier to the relay, on the relaycompleting association procedure with the BS. The network is furtherconfigured to enable the BS to send a control message to the relayinstructing the relay to power down when the relay has not served anyUEs for a specified period of time. The network is further configured toenable the BS to send a control message to the relay instructing therelay to power down when the relay is causing excessive interference.The network is further configured to enable the relay to power down whenthe relay detects that mobility level of the relay has crossed apredefined threshold.

Disclosed herein is a wireless communication network comprising of atleast one User Equipment (UE), at least one relay and at least one BaseStation (BS), where the User Equipment (UE) is attached to the BS andcommunicates with the BS via the relay associated with the BS, thenetwork configured to enable the BS to check if the UE is authorized toassociate with the relay, on detecting the UE in coverage area of therelay, wherein the UE is associated with the BS; and the BS to instructthe UE to perform measurements on the relay; the BS to instruct therelay to transmit a signal comprising of unique identifier of the relayand relevant system information; the UE to make measurements on basis ofthe signal received from the relay; the UE to report the measurements tothe BS; the BS to decide if the relay meets criteria required to servethe UE, based on the measurements received from the UE; and the BS toassociate the UE with the relay, if the relay meets criteria required toserve the UE. The network is further configured to enable the BS toinform the relay about the UE, on the BS deciding that the UE can beserved by the relay; and the BS to share UE-related information with therelay. The network is further configured to enable the relay to sendinformation received from the BS to the UE, where the information is atleast one of data or control signals and where destination of thereceived information is the UE; and the relay to send informationreceived from the UE to the BS, where the information is at least one ofdata or control signals and where destination of the receivedinformation is the BS. The network is further configured to enable therelay to convert the received information into baseband; the relay toperform channel estimation on the received information; the relay toequalize the information using the channel estimation; the relay to makehard decisions on the equalized information; the relay to constructframe using the at least one of the equalized information or the harddecisions; the relay to generate pilots and inserting the pilots in theframe; and the relay to transmit the frame. The network is furtherconfigured to enable the relay to make the hard decisions by configuringthe relay to demodulate the equalized information; the relay todescramble the demodulated information; the relay to rescramble thede-scrambled information using a scrambling sequence, wherein the BSinforms the relay of the scrambling sequence; and the relay to modulatethe scrambled information. The network is further configured to enableBS to select the scrambling sequence before transmission of the data tothe relay corresponding to time instant when the relay forwards data tothe UE. The network is further configured to enable the relay togenerate the generated pilots based on instructions from the BS. Thenetwork is further configured to consider criteria required for therelay to serve the UE comprising at least one of radio link between therelay and the UE meeting a threshold quality level; number of UEsattached to the relay not exceeding a threshold value; and link betweenthe BS and the relay not being overloaded. The network is furtherconfigured to consider criteria required for the relay to serve the UEcomprising at least one of the UE being present in CSG of the relay. Thenetwork is further configured to enable the BS to control schedule oftransmissions from the relay to the UE. The network is furtherconfigured to enable the BS to indicate resources that may be used fortransmissions from the relay to the UE; indicate resources that may notbe used for transmissions from the relay to the UE; and indicate a setof resources, from which the relay may pick resources for transmissionsfrom the relay to the UE. The network is further configured to enablethe BS to send the indications periodically or aperiodically. Thenetwork is further configured to enable the BS to send UE-specificinformation to the relay needed to decode control information for the UEwhen the UE is associated with the relay; and the relay to decodecontrol information sent by the BS to the UE, wherein the controlinformation comprises of downlink resource allocation and uplink grantfor the UE. The network is further configured to enable the BS tocontrol power of transmissions between the relay and the UE. The networkis further configured to enable the BS to control power of transmissionsfrom the UE to the relay by enabling the relay to measure transmit powerof the UE; the relay to report received power from the UE to the BS; theBS to determine power to be used on link between the UE and the relay;and the BS to signal power level to the UE. The network is furtherconfigured to enable the relay to measure transmit power of the UE usingsounding channel. The network is further configured to enable the relayto vary transmit power level within a range of power levels set by theBS, wherein the power level is the range of power levels. The network isfurther configured to enable the BS to send control signals directly tothe UE.

Disclosed herein is a wireless communication network comprising of atleast one User Equipment (UE), at least one relay and at least one BaseStation (BS), the network enabling the User Equipment (UE) to attachwith a BS in presence of relays, when the UE becomes active from idlemode or powers on by configuring the network to enable the UE to measurereceived signal strengths from a plurality of BSs; the UE to measurereceived signal strengths from at least one relay, when the at least onerelay has been instructed by their serving BS to transmit uniqueidentifier of the relay, cell barring message and other systeminformation; the UE to check for cell barring message in thetransmission; the UE to not attach with relays, on detectingcell-barring message in transmission from the relays; and the UE toattach with one of the BS.

Disclosed herein is a wireless communication network comprising of atleast one User Equipment (UE), at least one relay and at least one BaseStation (BS), the network enabling the User Equipment (UE) to attachwith serving BS of a relay, when the UE becomes active from idle mode orpowers on by configuring the network to enable the UE to measurereceived signal strengths from a plurality of BSs; the UE to measurereceived signal strengths from at least one relay, when the at least onerelay has been instructed by their serving BS to transmit uniqueidentifier of the relay, list of blacklisted BSs, cell barring messageand other system information, where the list of blacklisted BSs includesall BSs except BS serving the relay; the UE to not attempt to attachwith any BSs present in the list of blacklisted BSs or the relay; andthe UE to attempt to attach with BS serving the relay.

Disclosed herein is a wireless communication network comprising of atleast one User Equipment (UE), at least one relay and at least one BaseStation (BS), the network enabling the User Equipment (UE) attached witha BS to associate with a relay by configuring the network to enable theUE to measure signal strength of at least one relay and neighbouringBSs; the UE to send a report to BS to which the UE is attached, whereinthe report comprises of the measurements of at least one relay that canserve the UE; the BS to find best relay that can be used to serve the UEbased on the report; the BS to associate the UE with the best relay, ifthe best relay is attached to the BS; the BS to instruct the UE tohandover to a neighbouring BS, if the best relay is associated with theneighbouring BS; and the BS to continue serving the UE directly, if thebest relay is not found. The network is further configured to considercriteria required for the BS to find the best relay comprises at leastone of proximity of the UE to the relay; signal strength of link betweenthe UE and the relay; signal strength of link between the relay andserving BS of the relay; number of UEs already associated with therelay; if the relay is CSG and the UE is in CSG list of the relay, ifthe relay has a CSG list; and if Quality of Service parameters of the UEcan be met while serving the UE through the relay.

Disclosed herein is a wireless communication network comprising of atleast one User Equipment (UE), at least one relay and at least one BaseStation (BS), the network enabling a relay to associate with a BaseStation (BS) by configuring the network to enable the relay searchingfor best BS; the relay attaching to the BS; the relay sending list ofClosed Subscriber Group (CSG) UEs of the relay to the best BS; the bestBS checks with neighbouring BS if at least one of the CSG UEs areattached with the neighbouring BS, if the best BS finds that none of theCSG UEs are attached to the best BS; and the best BS instructing therelay to handover to a neighbouring BS, if one neighbouring BS confirmspresence of at least one CSG UE attached to the neighbouring BS and ifother association criteria are satisfied. The network is configured toenable the BS to assign a unique identifier to the relay, on the relaycompleting association procedure with the BS. The network is configuredto enable the relay to register capabilities of the relay with the BS,on the relay completing association procedure with the BS. The networkis further configured to enable the BS to assign a network identifier tothe relay, on the relay completing association procedure with the BS.The network is configured to enable the BS to send a control message tothe relay instructing the relay to power down when the relay has notserved any UEs for a specified period of time. The network is configuredto enable the BS to send a control message to the relay instructing therelay to power down when the relay is causing excessive interference.The network is configured to enable the relay to power down when therelay detects that mobility level of the relay has crossed a predefinedthreshold. The network is further configured to consider the associationcriteria comprising at least one of proximity of the CSG UE to therelay; signal strength of link between the UE and the relay; quality oflink between the relay and the neighbouring BS; number of UEs associatedwith the relay; and if Quality of Service parameters of the UE can bemet while serving it through the relay.

Disclosed herein is a wireless communication network comprising of atleast one User Equipment (UE), at least one relay and at least one BaseStation (BS), the network configured to enable the BS to trigger therelay to transmit identifier and other system information by enablingthe BS to detect a UE that is authorized to connect to the relay invicinity of the relay; and the BS to instruct the relay to broadcast theunique identifier and system information.

Disclosed herein is a wireless communication network comprising of atleast one User Equipment (UE), at least one relay and at least one BaseStation (BS), the network configured to enable the BS to trigger therelay to transmit unique identifier and other system information byenabling the BS to receive a request for a scanning interval from a UE;the BS to send a measurement list to the UE which includes the relay;and the BS to instruct the relay to broadcast the unique identifier andsystem information.

Disclosed herein is a wireless communication network comprising of atleast one User Equipment (UE), at least one relay and at least one BaseStation (BS), the network configured to enable the BS to trigger therelay to transmit unique identifier and other system information byenabling the BS to instruct an attached UE to measure signal strength ofa list of BS and relays which includes the relay; and the BS to instructthe relay to broadcast the unique identifier and system information.

Disclosed herein is a wireless communication network comprising of atleast one User Equipment (UE), at least one relay and at least one BaseStation (BS), the network configured to enable the BS to trigger therelay to transmit unique identifier and other system information byenabling the BS to receive a request from a neighbouring BS; and the BSto instruct the relay to broadcast the unique identifier and systeminformation.

Disclosed herein is a relay in a wireless communication network, therelay comprising at least one means configured to search for a best BS;attach to the best BS; send list of Closed Subscriber Group (CSG) UEs tothe BS; check if at least one of the CSG UEs is attached to the BS; andcomplete association procedure with the BS if at least one CSG UE isattached to the BS. The relay is further configured to check if apre-specified number of failed association attempts have been reached,if the best BS did not have at least one CSG UE attached to it or therelay cannot associate with the best BS; and attempt to associate withnext best BS, if the pre-specified number of failed association attemptshas not been reached. The relay is further configured to power down fora pre-specified time period after the pre-specified number of failedassociation attempts has been reached. The relay is further configuredto associate with the best BS if no BS with at least one the CSG UE isfound when the pre-specified number of association attempts have beenreached; enter into idle mode; and enter into active mode, on receivinga message from the BS that at least one CSG UE is detected in vicinityof the relay. The relay is further configured to associate with aplurality of BSs if no BS with at least one the CSG UE is found when thepre-specified number of association attempts have been reached; enterinto idle mode; and associate with one BS from the plurality of BSs, onreceiving a message from the one BS that at least one CSG UE is detectedin vicinity of the relay. The relay is further configured to registercapabilities of the relay with the BS, on the relay completingassociation procedure with the BS. The relay is further configured topower down when the relay detects that mobility level of the relay hascrossed a predefined threshold. The relay is further configured to sendinformation received from the BS to the UE, where the information is atleast one of data or control signals and where destination of thereceived information is the UE; and send information received from theUE to the BS, where the information is at least one of data or controlsignals and where destination of the received information is the BS. Therelay is further configured to convert the received information intobaseband; perform channel estimation on the received information;equalize the information using the channel estimation; make harddecisions on the equalized information; construct frame using the atleast one of the equalized information or the hard decisions; generatepilots and inserting the pilots in the frame; and transmit the frame.The relay is further configured to making the hard decisions bydemodulating the equalized information; descrambling the demodulatedinformation; rescrambling the de-scrambled information using ascrambling sequence, wherein the BS informs the relay of the scramblingsequence; and modulating the scrambled information. The relay is furtherconfigured to generate the generated pilots based on instructions fromthe BS. The relay is configured to decode control information sent bythe BS to the UE, wherein the control information comprises of downlinkresource allocation and uplink grant for the UE. The relay is furtherconfigured to measure transmit power of the UE, on receiving anindication from the BS; report transmit power from the UE to the BS; andchange signal power of transmission based on an indication received fromthe BS. The relay is configured to measure transmit power of the UEusing sounding channel. The relay is configured to vary transmit powerlevel within a range of power levels set by the BS, wherein the powerlevel is the range of power levels. The relay comprises at least oneantenna.

Disclosed herein is a relay in a wireless communication network, therelay comprising at least one means configured to search for a best BS;attach to the best BS; send list of Closed Subscriber Group (CSG) UEs ofthe relay to the best BS; hand over to a neighbouring BS, on receivingan indication from the best BS, further wherein the best BS sending theindication on the neighbouring BS confirming presence of at least oneCSG UE attached to the neighbouring BS and if other association criteriaare satisfied. The relay is configured to register capabilities of therelay with the neighbouring BS, on the relay completing associationprocedure with the neighbouring BS. The relay comprises at least oneantenna.

Disclosed herein is a relay in a wireless communication network, therelay comprising at least one means configured to broadcast identifierand system information on receiving an indication from a BS, where therelay is attached to the BS. The relay comprises at least one antenna.

Disclosed herein is a Base Station (BS) in a wireless communicationnetwork, the BS comprising at least one means configured to check if atleast one Closed Subscriber Group (CSG) UEs from a list of CSG UEs isattached to the BS, on a relay attaching to the BS and receiving a listof CSG UEs from the relay; send an indication to the relay, if at leastone CSG UE is attached to the BS; and enable the relay to completeassociation procedure with the BS. The BS is further configured to checkif a UE is present in the list of CSG UEs, on the UE attaching to the BSand the relay is attached to the BS and the relay is in idle mode; andsend a message to the relay, if the UE is present in the list of CSGUEs. The BS is configured to assign a unique identifier to the relay, onthe relay completing association procedure with the BS. The BS isconfigured to assign a network identifier to the relay, on the relaycompleting association procedure with the BS. The BS is configured tosend a control message to the relay instructing the relay to power downwhen the relay has not served any UEs for a specified period of time.The BS is configured to send a control message to the relay instructingthe relay to power down when the relay is causing excessiveinterference.

Disclosed herein is a Base Station (BS) in a wireless communicationnetwork, the BS comprising at least one means configured to check if aUE is authorized to associate with a relay, on detecting the UE incoverage area of the relay, wherein the UE is associated with the BS;and instruct the UE to perform measurements on the relay; instruct therelay to transmit a signal comprising of unique identifier of the relayand relevant system information; decide if the relay meets criteriarequired to serve the UE, based on the measurements received from theUE; and associate the UE with the relay, if the relay meets criteriarequired to serve the UE. The BS is configured to inform the relay aboutthe UE, on the BS deciding that the UE can be served by the relay; andshare UE-related information with the relay. The BS is configured toselect the scrambling sequence before transmission of the data to therelay corresponding to time instant when the relay forwards data to theUE. The BS is configured to send instructions regarding pilots to therelay. The BS is further configured to consider criteria required forthe relay to serve the UE comprising at least one of radio link betweenthe relay and the UE meeting a threshold quality level; number of UEsattached to the relay not exceeding a threshold value; and link betweenthe BS and the relay not being overloaded. The BS is configured toconsider criteria required for the relay to serve the UE comprising atleast one of the UE being present in CSG of the relay. The BS isconfigured to control schedule of transmissions from the relay to theUE. The BS is configured to indicate resources that may be used fortransmissions from the relay to the UE; indicate resources that may notbe used for transmissions from the relay to the UE; and indicate a setof resources, from which the relay may pick resources for transmissionsfrom the relay to the UE. The BS is configured to send the indicationsperiodically or aperiodially. The BS is configured to send UE-specificinformation to the relay needed to decode control information for the UEwhen the UE is associated with the relay. The BS is configured tocontrol power of transmissions between the relay and the UE bydetermining power to be used on link between the UE and the relay, basedon reports from the relay comprising measurements of received power fromthe UE; and signalling power level to the UE. The BS is configured tosend the power level as a range of power levels. The BS is configured tosend control signals directly to the UE.

Disclosed herein is a Base Station (BS) in a wireless communicationnetwork, the BS comprising at least one means configured to find bestrelay that can be used to serve a UE based on a report, on receiving areport from the UE (wherein the UE is attached to the BS), wherein thereport send by the UE comprises of measured signal strength of at leastone relay and neighbouring BSs; associate the UE with the best relay, ifthe best relay is attached to the BS; and instruct the UE to handover toa neighbouring BS, if the best relay is associated with the neighbouringBS. The criteria considered by the BS to find the best relay comprisesat least one of proximity of the UE to the relay; signal strength oflink between the UE and the relay; signal strength of link between therelay and serving BS of the relay; number of UEs already associated withthe relay; if the relay is CSG and the UE is in CSG list of the relay,if the relay has a CSG list; and if Quality of Service parameters of theUE can be met while serving the UE through the relay.

Disclosed herein is a Base Station (BS) in a wireless communicationnetwork, the BS comprising at least one means configured to check withneighbouring BS if any CSG UEs from a list of Closed Subscriber Group(CSG) UEs from a relay are attached with the BS, if the BS finds thatnone of the CSG UEs are attached to the BS, on receiving a list of CSGUEs from the relay; and instruct the relay to handover to a neighbouringBS, if one neighbouring BS confirms presence of at least one CSG UEattached to the neighbouring BS and if other association criteria aresatisfied. The BS is configured to assign a unique identifier to therelay, on the relay completing association procedure with the BS. The BSis configured to assign a network identifier to the relay, on the relaycompleting association procedure with the BS. The BS is configured tosend a control message to the relay instructing the relay to power downwhen the relay has not served any UEs for a specified period of time.The BS is configured to send a control message to the relay instructingthe relay to power down when the relay is causing excessiveinterference. The BS is configured to consider the association criteriacomprising at least one of proximity of the CSG UE to the relay; signalstrength of link between the UE and the relay; quality of link betweenthe relay and the neighbouring BS; number of UEs associated with therelay; and if Quality of Service parameters of the UE can be met whileserving the UE through the relay.

Disclosed herein is a Base Station (BS) in a wireless communicationnetwork, the BS comprising at least one means configured to detect a UEthat is authorized to connect to the relay in vicinity of the relay; andinstruct the relay to broadcast unique identifier of the relay andsystem information.

Disclosed herein is a Base Station (BS) in a wireless communicationnetwork, the BS comprising at least one means configured to receive arequest for a scanning interval from a UE; send a measurement list tothe UE which includes the relay; and instruct the relay to broadcastunique identifier of the relay and system information.

Disclosed herein is a Base Station (BS) in a wireless communicationnetwork, the BS comprising at least one means configured to instruct anattached UE to measure signal strength of a list of BS and relays whichincludes the relay; and instruct the relay to broadcast uniqueidentifier of the relay and system information.

Disclosed herein is a Base Station (BS) in a wireless communicationnetwork, the BS comprising at least one means configured to receive arequest from a neighbouring BS; and instruct the relay to broadcastunique identifier of the relay and system information.

These and other aspects of the embodiments herein will be betterappreciated and understood when considered in conjunction with thefollowing description and the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

The embodiments herein will be better understood from the followingdetailed description with reference to the drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 depicts a wireless communication network, according toembodiments as disclosed herein;

FIG. 2 depicts a relay, according to embodiments as disclosed herein;

FIG. 3 depicts a base station, according to embodiments as disclosedherein;

FIG. 4 depicts a relay associating to a BS, according to embodiments asdisclosed herein;

FIG. 5 depicts a relay associating to a BS, according to embodiments asdisclosed herein;

FIG. 6 depicts a relay associating to a BS, according to embodiments asdisclosed herein;

FIG. 7 depicts a method where a UE associates with a relay, according toembodiments as disclosed herein;

FIG. 8 depicts a method where a UE associates with a relay, according toembodiments as disclosed herein;

FIG. 9 depicts the relay processing received data, according toembodiments as disclosed herein;

FIG. 10 depicts allocation of resources, according to embodiments asdisclosed herein;

FIG. 11 depicts the control signals being exchanged between the UE andthe BS directly, according to embodiments as disclosed herein;

FIG. 12 depicts the control signals being exchanged between the UE andthe Bs via the relay 101, along with the data signals, according toembodiments as disclosed herein;

FIG. 13 depicts a method for addition of the relay to the list of BS tobe measured by UE in the vicinity of the relay, according to embodimentsas disclosed herein; and

FIG. 14 depicts a method for addition of the relay to the list of BS tobe measured by UE in the vicinity of the relay, according to embodimentsas disclosed herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

The embodiments herein and the various features and advantageous detailsthereof are explained more fully with reference to the non-limitingembodiments that are illustrated in the accompanying drawings anddetailed in the following description. Descriptions of well-knowncomponents and processing techniques are omitted so as to notunnecessarily obscure the embodiments herein. The examples used hereinare intended merely to facilitate an understanding of ways in which theembodiments herein may be practiced and to further enable those of skillin the art to practice the embodiments herein. Accordingly, the examplesshould not be construed as limiting the scope of the embodiments herein.

The embodiments herein disclose an indoor personal relay which has awireless interface with the Base Stations (BS), which is effective inboth cost and technology terms. Referring now to the drawings, and moreparticularly to FIGS. 1 through 14, where similar reference charactersdenote corresponding features consistently throughout the figures, thereare shown embodiments.

Embodiments disclosed herein relates to a relay used in conjunction withBS for improving the coverage and throughput to indoor users, whereinthe relay can be attached to at least one BS and used by the BS toforward data and signaling to/from User Equipments (UEs) which areconnected to the BS.

FIG. 1 depicts a wireless communication network, according toembodiments as disclosed herein. The network as depicted comprises of atleast one BS 102, a relay 101 and at least one UE 103. The BS 102 may beone of a cellular BS, a pico BS, a macro BS, a femto BS, L3 relay or anyother device capable of performing similar functions. The relay 101 isan estimate-and-forward relay as defined in literature. The relay 101will have antennas to form a high SINR link with a BS, where theantennas may be directional, appropriately beam-formed antennas, anantenna array or any other suitable antenna. Based on the receivedsignal strength from the BS 102, the relay 101 can be installed at anappropriate location in the vicinity of the targeted UE 103. The relay101 on powering up associates with a suitable BS 102. In anotherembodiment herein, the relay 101 may also associate with more than oneBS 102 at a time. The UE 103 must be authorized to associate with therelay 101. The relay 101 forwards the signals which may comprise of dataand control information from the BS 102 to the UE 103 and from the UE103 to the BS 102.

UE 103 is associated with relay 101 in the sense that relay 101 can onlybe used to forward data and control between UE 103 and BS 102 without UE103 undergoing any network attachment procedure with the relay 101.Relay 101 is considered to be associated with BS 102 when it hascompleted the attachment and capability registration procedures and hasbeen assigned the unique identifier and network identifier. Relay 101can also perform simple attachment like a UE. In the attached state, itcan share the list of CSG UEs with the BS.

FIG. 2 depicts a relay, according to embodiments as disclosed herein.The relay 101 comprises of a UE functionality module 201, a signalingmodule 202, a power control module 203, an O&M module 204, a BSassociation module 205, a PHY processing module 206, a memory module 207and a motion sensing module 208.

The signaling module 202 is in charge of creating messages destined forthe BS 102 and transferring the messages to the BS 102 using appropriatemeans. The signaling module 202 is also in charge of receiving messagessent from the BS 102 and processing the messages. The signaling module202 may further instruct other modules in the relay 101 to performappropriate actions, as per the received messages.

The power control module 203 measures the power from the UE 103. Themeasurement of the power from the UE 103 is done using an appropriatemeans such as sounding signals or any other relevant transmissionreceived from the UE 103. The power control module 203 can also vary therelay transmit power, either autonomously or under instructions from theBS 102.

The O&M module 204 receives operational information from the BS 102 andmakes the necessary configurations and settings. The operationalinformation may comprise of messages such as provisioning messages.

The BS association module 205 selects the BS 102 to which the relay mustattach/associate. The BS association module 205 may select the BS 102with the strongest signal. The BS association module 205 may also selectthe BS 102 which has more users present in the CSG of the relay. The BSassociation module 205 may also select a plurality of BS 102 to attachwith.

The PHY processing module 206 receives the signals to be forwarded bythe relay 101 from the UE 103 to BS 102 or the BS 102 to UE 103. The PHYprocessing module 206 then detects modulated symbols present in thesereceived signals in terms of the hard or soft decisions. The PHYprocessing module 206 also maps the detected symbols to the specific setof resources within the relay for transmission either to the UE 103 orthe BS 102. The PHY processing module 206 also performs frame formattingas specified by the BS 102. The PHY processing module 206 generatespilots and inserts them in the appropriate positions in the formattedframe. The PHY processing module 206 uses the same set of pilots asgenerated by the BS 102. The formatted frame is transmitted by the relay101. The PHY processing module 206 also generates a unique identifierassociated with the relay 101. The PHY processing module 206 furthergenerates the appropriate System Information (SI). The PHY processingmodule 206 transmits the unique identifier and the SI, when instructedby the BS 102. Any data or control signals meant only for the relay 101is processed by the relay in a manner similar to the processing employedat a standard UE terminal.

The UE module 201 further comprises hardware (such as transmitter,receiver, RF chain, buffers, and processor) and software present in astandard user terminal. The UE module 201 presents an interface enablingthe relay 101 to communicate with the BS 102, like a typical userterminal. The UE module 201 hardware such as transmitter, receiver andRF chain is also used to communicate with the UE 103.

The memory module 207 as depicted comprises of a data and controlbuffer, a user database and system information database. The data andcontrol buffer is used as a temporary storage for data and controlmessages, which are exchanged between the UE 103 and the BS 102. Theuser database comprises a list of CSG users, who are authorized toassociate with the relay 101. The user database may also comprise a listof temporary identities which have been assigned by the BS to UEsassociated with the relay 101. The memory module 207 may also comprise asystem information database, where information related to the relay 101such as the relay identifier, synchronization sequences, system framenumbers, list of blacklisted BS and other relevant system informationthat needs to be transmitted by the relay 101.

The motion sensing module 208 comprises of a sensor for detecting relaymobility and facility to disable/power down the relay when mobilityexceeds a preset threshold.

The relay shall comprise of at least one antenna, where the antenna maybe a directional antenna, an appropriately beam-formed antenna, anantenna array or any other suitable antenna.

FIG. 3 depicts the relay controller (RC) module of a base station,according to embodiments as disclosed herein. The RC of BS 102 comprisesof an association module 301, a signaling module 302, a power controlmodule 303, a configuration and O&M module 305, an identifier selectionmodule 304, a scheduler 306, a measurement configuration module 307, apaging controller module 308 and a memory module 309. Besides the RCmodule, BS 102 also includes the standard BS hardware and softwarecomponents.

The association module 301 associates a UE 103 with a relay 101, basedon a plurality of factors comprising of reported signal strength, CSGgroup and so on. The association module 301 may also decide to associatethe UE 103 with another relay 101, based on measurement reports or otherfactors. The relay 101 may be associated with the same BS 102 or anotherBS 102. The association module 301 decides if a relay 101 can associatewith the BS 102. The association module 301 may also hand over the relay101 (where the relay 101 is already associated with the BS 102 or isrequesting to be associated with the BS 102) to another BS 102. This maybe done for load balancing or for serving a UE 103 served by aneighboring BS 102.

The power control module 303 receives power level information from relay101 and UE 103. This information is used to decide upon the appropriatepower levels for relay 101 and UE 103 for the relay-UE link. The powercontrol module 303 sends control messages to set the level of thetransmission power for the link between the relay 101 and the UE 103.

The signaling module 302 is responsible for transferring controlmessages to the relay 101. The signaling module 302 is also responsiblefor receiving and processing control messages from the relay 101. Thesignaling module 302 is used for communicating between BSs, where thecommunication includes exchange of messages related to relays andhandover commands for relays.

The identifier selector module 304 selects an appropriate uniqueidentifier for a relay 101. The unique identifier may be the cellidentifier, similar to the one used by BS 102. The unique identifier mayalso serve as the basis for selecting the reference signals or pilotstransmitted by the relay 101. The identifier may be selected by theidentifier selector module 304 or may be suggested by the relay with theidentifier selector module 304 confirming the validity of the suggestedidentifier. The identifier selector module 304 also selects anappropriate network identifier for a relay 101. It is unique within thescope of BS 102 and is used only within BS 102 and relays 101 associatedwith it. The network identifier is used by the BS to distinguish amongits relay 101 for the purpose of control signaling, configuration andO&M. If relay 101 is handed over to another BS 102, it is assigned a newnetwork identifier by the BS 102.

The configuration and O&M module 305 configures the operating parametersof the relay after the relay 101 has associated with the BS 102. Theconfiguration and O&M module 305 also performs maintenance of the relay101 in terms of adjusting the operating parameters of the relay, whenthe relay is associated with the BS 102. The configuration and O&Mmodule 305 may command the relay 101 to shut down, when triggered by thepower control module 303.

The scheduler 306 classifies UEs 103 into a plurality of categories suchas victim, safe. A UE 103 is labeled as Victim with respect to a relay101 or BS 102 if it receives excessive interference from them. A UE 103is labeled as Safe with respect to a relay 101 or BS 102 if it does notreceive excessive interference from them. This classification is done onthe basis of measurements reported by the UE 103 to the BS 102. Thescheduler 306 will also allocate resources (time slots, frequencies andso on) for transmissions on the link between the relays 101 and UEs 103.The scheduling for the link between BS 102 and relay 101 is performedlike the scheduling for a UE using the scheduling unit already presentin the BS functionality module.

The measurement configuration module 307 adds unique identifiers ofrelays to the neighboring BS list broadcast by the BS 102. Themeasurement configuration module 307 also adds unique identifiers of therelay 101 to the list of identifiers of BSs 102 to be scanned by a UE103. The measurement configuration module 307 also triggers thetransmission of the unique identifier and other relevant informationsuch as pilots/reference signals, synchronization signals and systeminformation by the relays 101 included in the list of BS identifiers.

The paging control unit 308 sends a page to an idle relay 101, when thepaging control unit 308 detects a UE 103 in the vicinity of the relay101. The relay may go into idle mode when there's no data to transmit orreceive. In idle mode, the relay is not detached from the serving BS atany point of time and its context is preserved in the BS. The relay issaid to be in active mode when it's powered on and not idle.

The memory module 309 comprises of a database for relays 101, with eachrelay 101 associated to the BS 102 having a distinct entry. Theinformation present comprises of identifiers for the relays 101(comprising of CSG identifier, network identifier and the uniqueidentifier associated with the relay 101). The CSG list associated witheach relay 101 may also be present within the memory module 309. Thememory module 309 also comprises of identifiers for other BSs to whichthe relay 101 may be associated to simultaneously. The memory module 309also contains a list of UEs associated with each relay 101 and thecapabilities of each of the relays 101. This information may be retainedin the BS even after the relay is no longer attached/associated with theBS, for a specified period of time.

In addition to the above mentioned modules, the BS 102 comprises of themodules which are normally present within a BS 102 and are necessary forits functioning. The above mentioned modules may interact with the othermodules of the BS 102, as and when required.

FIG. 4 depicts a relay connecting to a BS, according to embodiments asdisclosed herein. The relay 101 is powered on (401). The relay 101 thensearches (402) for the best BS 102. The best BS 102 may be the BS 102which has the highest signal strength as seen by the relay 101. Therelay 101 connects (403) to the best BS 102, after deciding the best BS102. The various actions in method 400 may be performed in the orderpresented, in a different order or simultaneously. Further, in someembodiments, some actions listed in FIG. 4 may be omitted.

FIG. 5 depicts a relay connecting to a BS, according to embodiments asdisclosed herein. The relay 101 is powered on (501). The relay 101 thensearches (502) for the best BS 102. The best BS 102 may be the BS 102which has the highest signal strength as seen by the relay 101. Once therelay 101 finds the best BS 102, the relay 101 shares (503) the CSG listwith the best BS 102. The BS 102 checks (504) if any UEs from the CSGlist of relay 101 are presently connected to the BS 102 and reports backto relay 101 If none of the UEs from the CSG list are presentlyconnected to the BS 102 and the maximum number of attempts have not been(506) reached, the relay 101 searches (509) for another BS 102 andrepeats steps 503-504 till the required BS 102 is found or the maximumnumber of attempts have been reached. If the required BS 102 is notfound and the maximum number of attempts have been reached, the relay101 associates with the best BS and then enters (507) into idle stateand waits (508) for a specified period of time. In either case, therelay 101 may search (509) for a BS 102 with active CSG UEs 103 againafter a specific period of time. If at least one UE from the CSG of therelay is connected to the BS 102, the relay 101 connects (505) to the BS102. In another embodiment herein, the relay 101 powers down after (506)if it does not find a best BS 102 to associate with instead of goinginto idle mode. It may power on after a specified period of time andrepeat the whole procedure. In another embodiment herein, the relay 101may connect to more than one BS 102. In this case, whenever a BS 102detects a CSG UE in the proximity of the relay 101, the BS 102 pages therelay 101. The various actions in method 500 may be performed in theorder presented, in a different order or simultaneously. Further, insome embodiments, some actions listed in FIG. 5 may be omitted.

FIG. 6 depicts a relay connecting to a BS, according to embodiments asdisclosed herein. The relay 101 is powered on (601). The relay 101 thensearches (602) for the best BS 102. The best BS 102 may be the BS 102which has the highest signal strength as seen by the relay 101. Once therelay 101 finds the best BS 102, it associates with the best BS 102 andthen shares (603) the CSG list with the best BS 102. BS 102 checks (604)if any UEs from the CSG are presently connected to it. If at least oneof the CSG UEs is connected to the BS 102, the relay 101 should completethe association procedure. If none of the UEs from the CSG list of therelay are connected to the BS 102, the BS 102 shares (605) the CSG listwith the neighboring BSs and the BS 102 checks (606) if any UEs from theCSG are presently connected to any of the neighboring BSs. If at leastone UE 103 is connected to one of the neighboring BSs, then the BS 102checks (607) if the connectivity criteria (such as radio link quality,proximity of the UE to the relay 101) are met. If the criteria are met,the relay 101 associates with BS 102. If more than one BS 102 meets thecriteria, the relay 101 shall select only one of the BS 102. If therequired neighboring BS 102 is not found, the BS 102 may attempt steps604-607 after a specific period of time. The various actions in method600 may be performed in the order presented, in a different order orsimultaneously. Further, in some embodiments, some actions listed inFIG. 6 may be omitted.

The association criteria can include factors such as Proximity of the UE103 to the relay 101, signal strength of link between UE 103 and relay101, signal strength of link between the relay 101 and serving BS 102 ofthe UE 103, number of UEs already associated with the relay 101, IfQuality of Service parameters of UE 103 can be met while serving UE 103through the relay.

Once the relay 101 has attached with the BS 102, the relay 101 registerswith the BS 102 as a relay using a control message and completes theassociation procedure. In another embodiment herein, the relay 101 mayconnect to the communication network using a similar method as L3relays.

The relay 101 aperiodically transmits its own identifier,pilots/reference signals, synchronization signals and system informationwhen directed by the BS 102 using a control message. The BS 102 maytrigger the relay 101 to transmit the unique identifier and relevantinformation pilots/reference signals, synchronization signals and systeminformation whenever an authorized UE performs network entry while beingin the vicinity of the relay 101. The BS 102 may determine if a UE 103is in the coverage area of the relay 101 based on location informationavailable to the BS 102. Additionally, the UE 103 may also use CSGproximity indication to inform the BS 102 that it approaching the relay101. In the absence of precise location info, the BS 102 may ask therelay 101 to transmit the unique identifier when the authorized UE 103enters the cell/sector. In addition, the BS 102 will request the relay101 to transmit the unique identifier and relevant information wheneverany attached UE requests the BS 102 for interval to perform interferencemeasurement or when the BS 102 wants a UE 103 to make interferencemeasurements on the relay 101 In addition, the relay 101 may beconfigured by the BS 102 to measure interference from other relays 101.In this case also, the other relays 101 will be commanded by the BS 101to transmit the unique identifier and relevant information. The BS 102can command the relay 101 to transmit the unique identifier and therelevant information based on a request from a neighboring BS 102.

A set of unique identifiers (or preambles) may be reserved by the BS 102to be assigned temporarily to the relays 101 associated with the BS 102.These unique identifiers enable the UE 103 to uniquely identify therelay 101 for both association and interference measurements.Non-colliding identifiers have to be assigned to the relays 101 suchthat the identity of a relay 101 can be uniquely determined One way forachieving this includes a mechanism wherein the relay 101 detects asuitable identifier via sensing identifier transmissions from otherrelays and the BS 102. Once an identifier is found, the relay 101 willrequest the BS 102 to assign the identifier to it using a controlmessage. In another embodiment herein, the BS 102 determines a suitableidentifier after excluding the identifiers used by its neighboring BS102 and other relays 101 in the same cell. The new identifier shouldhave very low cross correlation with the identifiers already used by theBS 102, and also the identifiers of other BSs and Relays in itsvicinity. It may be possible to take the identifiers from theidentifiers reserved for femtos.

The relay 101 aperiodically transmits signals (e.g. Identifiers, Syncsignals, Pilots/Reference Signals etc) which enable the UEs to identifythe relay 101 uniquely. Whenever the relay 101 is commanded to transmitunique identifier and other system information, it may indicate that thecell is barred for the UE 103. This will force the UE 103 to attach to aBS 102, as per standard procedure. Barring here means that UE is notallowed to camp on the cell.

In another embodiment herein, the relay 101 may signal a list ofblacklisted BSs 102 to the UE 103. This list includes all BSs 102 exceptfor the one which is serving the relay 101. The UE 103 will not attemptto attach with any of the blacklisted BSs 102, thereby forcing the UE103 to select the serving BS 102 of the relay 101 for network entry.

Once the UE 103 is attached to the serving BS 102, procedures forassociating UE with relay may be applied by the BS.

FIG. 7 depicts a method where a UE associates with a relay, according toembodiments as disclosed herein. Once the UE 103 attaches (701) to a BS102, the relay 101 (where the UE 103 is present within the coverage areaof the relay 101) transmits (702) the identifier, which is done at thecommand of the BS 102. The UE 103 detects (703) the signal strength ofthe transmission from the relay 101 and sends (704) a report to the BS102. The BS 102 checks (705) if the relay 101 is not open i.e., therelay 101 has a CSG list defined. If the relay 101 has a CSG list, thenthe BS 102 checks (706) if the UE 103 is present in the CSG list of therelay 101. If the relay 101 does not have a CSG list or the UE 103 ispresent in the CSG of the relay 101, then the BS 102 checks (707) if therelay 101 meets the connectivity criteria (such as radio link quality,proximity of the UE to the relay 101). If the connectivity criteria aremet, then the UE is associated with (708) the relay 101 and the relay101 are informed about the associated UE and its related information.The various actions in method 700 may be performed in the orderpresented, in a different order or simultaneously. Further, in someembodiments, some actions listed in FIG. 7 may be omitted.

FIG. 8 depicts a method where a UE associates with a relay, according toembodiments as disclosed herein. The BS 102 receives (801) a report fromthe UE 103 regarding the signal strength of a relay associated with aneighboring BS 102. The BS 102 checks (802) if the relay 101 is not openi.e., the relay 101 has a CSG list defined. If the relay 101 has a CSG,then the BS 102 checks (803) if the UE 103 is present in the CSG list ofthe relay 101. If the relay 101 does not have a CSG or the UE 103 ispresent in the CSG of the relay 101, then the BS 102 checks (804) if therelay 101 meets the connectivity criteria (such as radio link quality,proximity of the UE to the relay 101). If the connectivity criteria aremet, then the BS 102 handovers (805) the UE 103 to the neighboring BSand the UE 103 is associated (806) with the relay 101. The variousactions in method 800 may be performed in the order presented, in adifferent order or simultaneously. Further, in some embodiments, someactions listed in FIG. 8 may be omitted.

The association criteria can include factors such as Proximity of the UE103 to the relay 101, signal strength of link between UE 103 and relay101, signal strength of link between the relay 101 and serving BS 102 ofthe UE 103, number of UEs already associated with the relay 101, IfQuality of Service parameters of UE 103 can be met while serving UE 103through the relay.

The BS 102 may send control signals and data to the relays 101. Thecontrol signals may be for the relay 101 or it has to be forwarded bythe relay 101 to the UE 103. Similarly, the data signals may be for therelay 101 or has to be forwarded by the relay 101 to the UE 103. The BS102 may inform the relay 101 using a dedicated control message about thesignalling and data which is to be forwarded to UEs 103. Alternatively,the relay 101 can also acquire the information by reading the resourceallocation messages sent by the BS 102 to the UE 103. In some cases, therelay 101 can do this only if it knows the UE-specific code used toscramble the resource allocation information. This code maybe sent by aBS 102 to the relay 101 using a control message.

FIG. 9 depicts the relay processing received data, according toembodiments as disclosed herein. The relay 101 receives (901) data. Therelay 101 may receive the data from the BS 102 or the UE 103. The relay101 converts (902) the data into baseband, estimates (903) the channel(in terms of channel quality based on the received pilot/referencesignals) and detects (904) the data. The relay 101 may map (905) thedetected soft data to appropriate constellation points (hard data). Therelay 101, formats (906) the frame by inserting the pilot signals alongwith the estimated data appropriately and transmits (907) the frame tothe destination (may be the BS 102 or the UE 103) using appropriateresources (time-frequency, codes and so on). The relay 101 as disclosedherein does not perform any additional channel decoding/encoding on thedata/signaling that it forwards between UE and BS. It may be noted thatthe relay 101 also does not perform any form of Hybrid ARQ (HARQ)processing on the data/signaling that it forwards between the BS and UE,implying that HARQ is end to end. The various actions in method 900 maybe performed in the order presented, in a different order orsimultaneously. Further, in some embodiments, some actions listed inFIG. 9 may be omitted.

In certain systems, data from/to the UE 103 is scrambled with atime-dependent sequence. Therefore when data is being forwarded by therelay from the BS to the UE, if there is processing/scheduling delay atthe relay, the detected data needs to be reformatted taking into accountthe time-dependent scrambling sequence. This further requires the BS 102to send the sequence to the relay and makes it mandatory for the relayto make hard decision, demodulate, descramble and re-scramble with thenew time dependent scrambling sequence and then modulate beforeformatting the frame for transmission to the UE 103. This could resultin error propagation and added complexity which can be avoided if the BS102 can scramble the data with a scrambling sequence corresponding tothe time instant when relay forwards the data to the UE 103. As therelay transmissions are scheduled by the BS 102, it knows the exact timeinstant when the relay will forward the data.

In the case of uplink transmissions via relay, the BS 102 will choosethe appropriate sequence for descrambling data from the UE 103, takinginto account the delay at the relay 101.

The BS 102 indicates the resources on which the relay 101 has to forwarddata to a UE 103. This indication may be explicitly signalled for eachframe/subframe or multiples thereof or it can be pre-definedsemi-statically by the BS 102 as a system parameter for each relay 101.In both cases, a control message has to be sent by the BS 102. Theallocation of resources may involve specifying a specific set ofresources available to a relay 101 or a specific set of resources onwhich the relay 101 is not allowed to transmit. The resources arespecified in terms of time slots, frequencies, codes (including acombination of these). FIG. 10 illustrates the different schedulingoptions. In FIG. 10, the relay 101 can transmit the data immediatelyafter receiving it, i.e. at the next transmission opportunity (depictedin FIG. 10(a) and FIG. 10(b)). The transmission may be done using thesame (as in FIG. 10(a)) or different set of frequency resources (FIG.10(b)), as used by the BS. In FIG. 10, frequencies f1, f2 etc, may referto subcarriers of the same or different carriers. In another embodimentherein, the relay 101 may forward the received data with a variabledelay (w.r.t. the time of reception), on the same or different set offrequency resources (as in FIG. 10(c)).

The BS 102 may determine the quality of the link between the relay 101and the UE 103 based on information about received power levels or anyother relevant measurements from both the relay 101 and the UE 103. Therelay 101 may forward any information it has about this link between theUE 103 and relay 101 to the BS 102 using a control message. For example,the relay 101 could measure the path loss from the UE sounding channel.Based on these reported measurements, the power control of the UE-relaylink may be determined by the BS 102 in a fine/coarse manner. The BS 102can configure interference measurement reporting (using existing controlmessages) from both the UE 103 and the relay 101 in order to use themeasurements for power control as well as relay-BS association andUE-relay association. The relay 101 may autonomously set and modify itsdownlink transmit power if it has information available about the link,e.g. using sounding reference signals transmitted by the UE 103.However, the master control is with the BS 102 which can over-ride thesetting configured by the relay 101 via a control message. The BS 102can also switch on/off the radio link between the relay 101 and the UE103. The uplink transmit power of relay 101 controlled by the BS 102, asis done for UEs. When control signalling is received directly from theUE 103 by the BS 102, the UE uplink power for this link is controlled byBS 102 in conventional manner.

FIG. 11 depicts the control signals being exchanged between the UE andthe BS directly.

FIG. 12 depicts the control signals being exchanged between the UE andthe Bs via the relay 101, along with the data signals.

The decision to associate a UE 103 with a relay 101 is taken by itsserving BS based on measurements reported by the UE 103. Thesemeasurements are done on identifier/pilots/reference signals transmittedthe relay 101, when asked by its serving BS 102.

FIG. 13 depicts a method for addition of a relay 101 to the list of BSto be measured by a UE 103, according to embodiments as disclosedherein. The UE 103 requests (1301) the BS 102 for the scanning interval,where the scanning interval refers to the interval when the UE performssignal strength measurement on a specific set of BS 102 and relay 101.The BS 102 adds (1302) the relays to the list of BSs to be scanned andsends (1303) the list along with the scanning interval to the UE 103.The relays 101 then transmit (1304) their identifiers upon receiving atrigger from the BS 102. The UE 103 measures (1305) the signal receivedfrom the relay 101 and sends (1306) a report to the BS 102. This reportmay include measurements of other BS 102 in the list. The variousactions in method 1300 may be performed in the order presented, in adifferent order or simultaneously. Further, in some embodiments, someactions listed in FIG. 13 may be omitted.

FIG. 14 depicts a method for addition of the relay to the list of BS tobe measured by UE in the vicinity of the relay, according to embodimentsas disclosed herein. The BS 102 commands (1401) the UE to performmeasurements, where the UE is requested to identify and measure therelays attached to the UE 103, which can be done using existing messagesand metrics. The relay 101 then transmits (1402) its identifiers uponreceiving a trigger from the BS 102. The UE 103 measures (1403) thesignal received from the relay 101 and sends (1404) a report to the BS102. The neighbor BS list which is periodically broadcast by BS 102 mayalso include relays 101. The various actions in method 1400 may beperformed in the order presented, in a different order orsimultaneously. Further, in some embodiments, some actions listed inFIG. 14 may be omitted.

Since the relay 101 also behaves like a UE, it may go into idle modewhen there's no data to transmit or receive. However, unlike a UE, therelay 101 will not be detached from the serving BS at any point of time,unless it is shut down.

When a user is served by a BS that is also serving the relay 101 (inidle mode), the latter may be woken up. BS may page the idle relay 101,when the UE is in its vicinity.

Direct handover to the relay 101 as such may not be permitted. However,the relay 101 will be informed about the associated UEs by serving BS.

Handover of relay 101 from one BS to another BS is allowed. Such ahandover may occur during the relay's initial attachment itself. Inaddition, the serving BS may handover the relay 101 to another BS forload balancing. In this case, all the UEs associated with the relay 101are also handed over to the target BS. Whenever a relay 101 is handedover to the target BS, all the associated UE also have to be handed overto the target BS. One criterion for deciding whether a relay 101 shouldbe handed over to a target BS 102 may the link quality between the UEsalready associated with the relay 101 and the target BS 102. Anothercriterion is the willingness of the target BS 102 to accept the UEs 103already associated with the relay 101.

The process of achieving relay O&M is implementation specific. Also,since the relay 101 also acts as UE, it will be authorized by AAA.Hence, any type of O&M facility could be built into the relay 101.

Embodiments disclosed herein enable the relevant UEs to have a high SINRlink with the relay. This, in turn, translates to a better effectivelink quality between the UE and BS and higher indoor rates, whichotherwise may have been not as good as a consequence of poorer directlink between the UE and the BS. This relay is effectively transparent tothe UE. The deployment of relays also implies minimal impact on UE IOT.

The association procedures (between UE-relay and BS-relay) describedhere are not limited to estimate-and-forward relays. These can also beused for any network entity which resides between the BS and UE and doesnot necessarily implement the full BS protocol stack and relatedfunctionality. Typical examples of such devices available right now arerepeaters, conventional relays (such as amplify-and-forward,estimate-and-forward, demodulate-and-forward, decode-and-forward) andremote radioheads etc. In some cases, a UE can also act like a relay.

For example, in the methods illustrated in FIGS. 5, 6, 7 and 8, therelay can be a repeater, remote radiohead, conventional relay, L3 relayor a UE. As far as the association procedures are concerned, the termrelay refers to any network entity which resides between the BS and UEand does not necessarily implement the full BS protocol stack andrelated functionality.

The embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented through at least onesoftware program running on at least one hardware device and performingnetwork management functions to control the network elements. Thenetwork elements shown in FIGS. 1, 2, 3, 11 and 12 include blocks whichcan be at least one of a hardware device, or a combination of hardwaredevice and software module.

The foregoing description of the specific embodiments will so fullyreveal the general nature of the embodiments herein that others can, byapplying current knowledge, readily modify and/or adapt for variousapplications such specific embodiments without departing from thegeneric concept, and, therefore, such adaptations and modificationsshould and are intended to be comprehended within the meaning and rangeof equivalents of the disclosed embodiments. It is to be understood thatthe phraseology or terminology employed herein is for the purpose ofdescription and not of limitation. Therefore, while the embodimentsherein have been described in terms of preferred embodiments, thoseskilled in the art will recognize that the embodiments herein can bepracticed with modification within the spirit and scope of the claims asdescribed herein.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method to enable a relay to associate with aBase Station (BS) in a wireless communication network, said methodcomprising of: powering on said relay; said relay searching for a bestBS; said relay attaching to said best BS; said relay sending a list ofClosed Subscriber Group (CSG) user equipment (UEs) of said relay to saidbest BS; said best BS checking with a neighboring BS when at least oneof said CSG UEs are attached with said neighboring BS, when said best BSfinds that none of said CSG UEs are attached to said best BS; said bestBS instructing said relay to hand over said relay to said neighboringBS, when said neighboring BS confirms a presence of at least one CSG UEattached to said neighboring BS and when association criteria aresatisfied; a UE in a coverage area of said relay measuring receivedsignal strengths from a plurality of base stations (BSs); said UE insaid coverage area of said relay measuring received signal strengthsfrom at least one relay when said at least one relay has been instructedby its serving BS to transmit a unique identifier of said relay, cellbarring message, and system information; and said UE in said coveragearea of said relay checking for a cell barring message in thetransmission of said unique identifier.
 2. The method of claim 1,wherein one of said best BS or said neighboring BS assigns said uniqueidentifier to said relay upon said relay completing an associationprocedure with one of said best BS or said neighboring BS.
 3. The methodof claim 1, wherein said relay registers capabilities of said relay withone of said best BS or said neighboring BS upon said relay completing anassociation procedure with said one of said best BS or said neighboringBS.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein said relay is assigned with anetwork identifier upon said relay completing an association procedurewith one of said best BS or said neighboring BS.
 5. The method of claim1, wherein one of said best BS or said neighboring BS sends a controlmessage to said relay instructing said relay to power down when saidrelay has not served any UEs for a specified period of time.
 6. Themethod of claim 1, wherein one of said best BS or said neighboring BSsends a control message to said relay instructing said relay to powerdown when said relay is causing excessive interference.
 7. The method ofclaim 1, wherein said relay powers down when said relay detects that amobility level of said relay has crossed a predefined threshold.
 8. Themethod of claim 1, wherein said association criteria comprises at leastone of: a proximity of said CSG UE to said relay; a signal strength oflink between said CSG UE and said relay; a quality of link between saidrelay and said neighboring BS; a number of CSG UEs associated with saidrelay; and when Quality of Service parameters of said CSG UE can be metwhile serving it through said relay.
 9. A wireless communication networkcomprising of at least one User Equipment (UE), at least one relay, andat least one Base Station (BS), said wireless communication networkenabling a relay to associate with a BS by configuring said wirelesscommunication network to enable: powering of said relay; said relaysearching for a best BS; said relay attaching to said best BS; saidrelay sending a list of Closed Subscriber Group (CSG) UEs of said relayto said best BS; said best BS checking with a neighboring BS when atleast one of said CSG UEs are attached with said neighboring BS, whensaid best BS finds that none of said CSG UEs are attached to said bestBS; said best BS instructing said relay to hand over said relay to saidneighboring BS, when said neighboring BS confirms presence of at leastone CSG UE attached to said neighboring BS and when association criteriaare satisfied; a UE in a coverage area of said relay measuring receivedsignal strengths from a plurality of base stations (BSs); said UE insaid coverage area of said relay measuring received signal strengthsfrom at least one relay when said at least one relay has been instructedby its serving BS to transmit a unique identifier of said relay, cellbarring message, and system information; and said UE in said coveragearea of said relay checking for a cell barring message in thetransmission of said unique identifier.
 10. The wireless communicationnetwork of claim 9, wherein said wireless communication network isconfigured to enable one of said best BS or said neighboring BS toassign a unique identifier to said relay upon said relay completing anassociation procedure with one of said best BS or said neighboring BS.11. The wireless communication network of claim 9, wherein said wirelesscommunication network is configured to enable said relay to registercapabilities of said relay with one of said best BS or said neighboringBS upon said relay completing an association procedure with one of saidbest BS or said neighboring BS.
 12. The wireless communication networkof claim 9, wherein said wireless communication network is furtherconfigured to enable one of said best BS or said neighboring BS toassign a network identifier to said relay upon said relay completing anassociation procedure with one of said best BS or said neighboring BS.13. The wireless communication network of claim 9, wherein said wirelesscommunication network is configured to enable one of said best BS orsaid neighboring BS to send a control message to said relay instructingsaid relay to power down when said relay has not served any UEs for aspecified period of time.
 14. The wireless communication network ofclaim 9, wherein said wireless communication network is configured toenable one of said best BS or said neighboring BS to send a controlmessage to said relay instructing said relay to power down when saidrelay is causing excessive interference.
 15. The wireless communicationnetwork of claim 9, wherein said wireless communication network isconfigured to enable said relay to power down when said relay detectsthat a mobility level of said relay has crossed a predefined threshold.16. The wireless communication network of claim 9, wherein saidassociation criteria comprising at least one of: a proximity of said CSGUE to said relay; a signal strength of link between said CSG UE and saidrelay; a quality of link between said relay and said neighboring BS; anumber of CSG UEs associated with said relay; and when Quality ofService parameters of said CSG UE can be met while serving it throughsaid relay.
 17. In a wireless communication network comprising a relay,said relay configured to: power on said relay; search for a best BS;attach to said best BS; send a list of Closed Subscriber Group (CSG)user equipment of said relay to said best BS; and hand over to aneighboring BS upon receiving an indication from said best BS, whereinsaid best BS sending said indication upon said neighboring BS confirminga presence of at least one CSG UE attached to said neighboring BS andwhen association criteria are satisfied, wherein a UE in a coverage areaof said relay is configured to measure received signal strengths from aplurality of base stations (BSs); measure received signal strengths fromat least one relay when said at least one relay has been instructed byits serving BS to transmit a unique identifier of said relay, cellbarring message, and system information; and check a cell barringmessage in the transmission of said unique identifier.
 18. The relay ofclaim 17, wherein said relay is configured to register capabilities ofsaid relay with said neighboring BS upon said relay completing anassociation procedure with said neighboring BS, and wherein said relayhas at least one antenna.
 19. The relay of claim 17, wherein said relayconfigured to broadcast an identifier and system information uponreceiving an indication from a BS, wherein said relay is attached tosaid BS, and wherein said relay comprises at least one antenna.
 20. In awireless communication network comprising a Base Station (BS), said BSconfigured to: power on a relay; check when at least one ClosedSubscriber Group (CSG) user equipment (UEs) from a list of CSG UEs isattached to said BS upon a relay attaching or handing over to said BSand receiving a list of CSG UEs from said relay; send an indication tosaid relay when at least one CSG UE is attached to said BS; and enablesaid relay to complete an association procedure with said BS, wherein aUE in a coverage area of said relay is configured to measure receivedsignal strengths from a plurality of base stations (BSs); measurereceived signal strengths from at least one relay when said at least onerelay has been instructed by its serving BS to transmit a uniqueidentifier of said relay, cell barring message, and system information;and check a cell barring message in the transmission of said uniqueidentifier.
 21. The base station of claim 20, wherein said BS is furtherconfigured to: check when a UE is present in said list of CSG UEs uponsaid UE attaching to said BS and said relay is attached to said BS andsaid relay is in idle mode; and send a message to said relay when saidUE is present in said list of CSG UEs.
 22. The base station of claim 20,wherein said BS is configured to assign said unique identifier to saidrelay upon said relay completing said association procedure with saidBS.
 23. The base station of claim 20, wherein said BS is configured toassign a network identifier to said relay upon said relay completingsaid association procedure with said BS.
 24. The base station of claim20, wherein said BS is configured to send a control message to saidrelay instructing said relay to power down when said relay has notserved any UEs for a specified period of time.
 25. The base station ofclaim 20, wherein said BS is configured to send a control message tosaid relay instructing said relay to power down when said relay iscausing excessive interference.
 26. In a wireless communication networkcomprising a Base Station (BS), said BS configured to: check with aneighboring BS when any Closed Subscriber Group (CSG) user equipment(UEs) from a list of CSG UEs from a relay are attached with said BS whensaid BS finds that none of said CSG UEs are attached to said BS uponreceiving a list of CSG UEs from said relay; and instruct said relay tohand over said relay to said neighboring BS, when said neighboring BSconfirms presence of at least one CSG UE attached to said neighboring BSand when association criteria are satisfied, wherein a UE in a coveragearea of said relay is configured to measure received signal strengthsfrom a plurality of base stations (BSs); measure received signalstrengths from at least one relay when said at least one relay has beeninstructed by its serving BS to transmit a unique identifier of saidrelay, cell barring message, and system information; and check a cellbarring message in the transmission of said unique identifier.
 27. Thebase station of claim 26, wherein said BS is configured to assign saidunique identifier to said relay upon said relay completing anassociation procedure with said BS.
 28. The base station of claim 26,wherein said BS is configured to assign a network identifier to saidrelay upon said relay completing an association procedure with said BS.29. The base station of claim 26, wherein said BS is configured to senda control message to said relay instructing said relay to power downwhen said relay has not served any UEs for a specified period of time.30. The base station of claim 26, wherein said BS is configured to senda control message to said relay instructing said relay to power downwhen said relay is causing excessive interference.
 31. The base stationof claim 26, wherein said BS is configured to consider said associationcriteria comprising at least one of: a proximity of said CSG UE to saidrelay; a signal strength of link between said CSG UE and said relay; aquality of link between said relay and said neighboring BS; a number ofCSG UEs associated with said relay; and when Quality of Serviceparameters of said CSG UE can be met while serving said UE through saidrelay.
 32. The method of claim 1, further comprising: enabling a UE toattach with a BS in a presence of relays when said UE becomes activefrom an idle mode or powers on; said UE not attaching with relays upondetecting said cell barring message in the transmission from said relay;and said UE attaching with said BS.
 33. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising: enabling said UE to attach with said serving BS of saidrelay when said UE becomes active from an idle mode or powers on; saidUE measuring said received signal strengths from at least one relay whensaid at least one relay has been instructed by its serving BS totransmit said unique identifier of said relay, a list of blacklistedBSs, said cell barring message, and said system information, whereinsaid list of blacklisted BSs includes all BSs except said BS servingsaid relay; said UE not attempting to attach with any BSs present insaid list of blacklisted BSs or said relay; and said UE attempting toattach with said serving BS of said relay.
 34. The wirelesscommunication network of claim 9, wherein said wireless communicationnetwork enables said UE to attach with a BS in a presence of relays whensaid UE becomes active from an idle mode or powers on by configuringsaid network to enable: said UE to not attach with relays upon detectingsaid cell barring message in transmission from said relay; and said UEto attach with said serving BS.
 35. The wireless communication networkof claim 9, wherein said wireless communication network enables: said UEto attach with said serving BS of said relay when said UE becomes activefrom an idle mode or powers on; said UE to measure said received signalstrengths from at least one relay when said at least one relay has beeninstructed by its serving BS to transmit said unique identifier of saidrelay, a list of blacklisted BSs, said cell barring message, and saidsystem information, wherein said list of blacklisted BSs includes allBSs except said BS serving said relay; said UE to not attempt to attachwith any BSs present in said list of blacklisted BSs or said relay; andsaid UE to attempt to attach with serving BS of said relay.
 36. Themethod of claim 1, further comprising: enabling a UE attached to said BSin said wireless communication network to communicate with said BS viasaid relay associated with said BS; said BS checking when said UE isauthorized to associate with said relay upon detecting said UE in acoverage area of said relay, wherein said UE is associated with said BS;said BS instructing said UE to perform measurements on said relay; saidBS instructing said relay to transmit a signal comprising said uniqueidentifier of said relay and said system information; said UE makingmeasurements on a basis of said signal received from said relay; said UEreporting said measurements to said BS; said BS deciding when said relaymeets a criteria required to serve said UE based on said measurementsreceived from said UE; and said BS associating said UE with said relaywhen said relay meets said criteria required to serve said UE, whereinsaid BS controls a schedule of transmissions from said relay to said UE.37. The method of claim 36, wherein said BS: indicates resources thatmay be used for transmissions from said relay to said UE; indicatesresources that may not be used for transmissions from said relay to saidUE; and indicates a set of resources, from which said relay may pickresources for transmissions from said relay to said UE.
 38. The methodof claim 36, wherein said BS sends indications of instructions to saidrelay periodically.
 39. The method of claim 36, wherein said BS sendsindications of instructions to said relay aperiodically.
 40. The methodof claim 36, further comprising: said BS sending UE-specific informationto said relay needed to decode control information for said UE when saidUE is associated with said relay; and said relay decoding controlinformation sent by said BS to said UE, wherein said control informationcomprises a downlink resource allocation and an uplink grant for saidUE.
 41. The method of claim 36, wherein said BS controls power oftransmissions between said relay and said UE.
 42. The method of claim41, wherein said BS controlling power of transmissions from said UE tosaid relay comprises of: said relay measuring a transmit power of saidUE; said relay reporting received power from said UE to said BS; said BSdetermining power to be used on a link between said UE and said relay;and said BS signaling a power level to said UE.
 43. The method of claim42, wherein said relay measures said transmit power of said UE using asounding channel.
 44. The method of claim 42, wherein said power levelcomprises a range of power levels and said relay varies a transmit powerlevel within a range set by said BS.
 45. The method of claim 36, whereinsaid BS sends control signals directly to said UE.
 46. The method ofclaim 36, wherein said method for said BS to instruct said relay totransmit said signal comprising of said unique identifier of said relayand said system information comprises: said BS detecting said UE that isauthorized to connect to said relay in a vicinity of said relay; andsaid BS instructing said relay to broadcast said unique identifier andsaid system information.
 47. The method of claim 36, wherein said BSinstructing said relay to transmit said signal comprising of said uniqueidentifier of said relay and said system information comprises: said BSreceiving a request for a scanning interval from said UE; said BSsending a measurement list to said UE which includes said relay; andsaid BS instructing said relay to broadcast said unique identifier andsaid system information.
 48. The method of claim 36, wherein said BSinstructing said relay to transmit said signal comprising of said uniqueidentifier of said relay and said system information comprises: said BSinstructing an attached UE to measure a signal strength of a list of BSand relays which includes said relay; and said BS instructing said relayto broadcast said unique identifier and said system information.
 49. Themethod of claim 36, wherein said BS instructing said relay to transmitsaid signal comprising of said unique identifier of said relay and saidsystem information comprises: said BS receiving a request from aneighboring BS; and said BS instructing said relay to broadcast saidunique identifier and said system information.
 50. The wirelesscommunication network of claim 9, wherein said UE is attached to a BSand communicates with said BS via said relay associated with said BS,and wherein said wireless communication network is configured to enable:said BS to check when said UE is authorized to associate with said relayupon detecting said UE in a coverage area of said relay, wherein said UEis associated with said BS; said BS to instruct said UE to performmeasurements on said relay; said BS to instruct said relay to transmit asignal comprising of said unique identifier of said relay and systeminformation; said UE to make measurements on a basis of said signalreceived from said relay; said UE to report said measurements to saidBS; said BS to decide when said relay meets a criteria required to servesaid UE based on said measurements received from said UE; said BS toassociate said UE with said relay when said relay meets said criteriarequired to serve said UE; and said BS to control a schedule oftransmissions from said relay to said UE.
 51. The wireless communicationnetwork of claim 50, wherein said wireless communication network isfurther configured to enable said BS to: indicate resources that may beused for transmissions from said relay to said UE; indicate resourcesthat may not be used for transmissions from said relay to said UE; andindicate a set of resources, from which said relay may pick resourcesfor transmissions from said relay to said UE.
 52. The wirelesscommunication network of claim 50, wherein said wireless communicationnetwork is further configured to enable said BS to send indications ofinstructions to said relay periodically.
 53. The wireless communicationnetwork of claim 50, wherein said wireless communication network isfurther configured to enable said BS to send indications of instructionsto said relay aperiodically.
 54. The wireless communication network ofclaim 50, wherein said wireless communication network is furtherconfigured to enable: said BS to send UE-specific information to saidrelay needed to decode control information for said UE when said UE isassociated with said relay; and said relay to decode control informationsent by said BS to said UE, wherein said control information comprises adownlink resource allocation and an uplink grant for said UE.
 55. Thewireless communication network of claim 50, wherein said wirelesscommunication network is further configured to enable said BS to controla power of transmissions between said relay and said UE.
 56. Thewireless communication network of claim 55, wherein said wirelesscommunication network is further configured to enable said BS to controlsaid power of transmissions from said UE to said relay by enabling: saidrelay to measure a transmit power of said UE; said relay to report areceived power from said UE to said BS; said BS to determine power to beused on a link between said UE and said relay; and said BS to signal apower level to said UE.
 57. The wireless communication network of claim56, wherein said wireless communication network is further configured toenable said relay to measure said transmit power of said UE using asounding channel.
 58. The wireless communication network of claim 56,wherein said wireless communication network is further configured toenable said relay to vary said transmit power level within a range ofpower levels set by said BS, and wherein said power level comprises saidrange of power levels.
 59. The wireless communication network of claim50, wherein said wireless communication network is further configured toenable said BS to send control signals directly to said UE.
 60. Thewireless communication network of claim 50, wherein said wirelesscommunication network that is configured to enable said BS to instructsaid relay to transmit said signal comprising of said unique identifierof said relay and said system information comprises: said BS to detectsaid UE that is authorized to connect to said relay in a vicinity ofsaid relay; and said BS to instruct said relay to broadcast said uniqueidentifier and said system information.
 61. The wireless communicationnetwork of claim 50, wherein said wireless communication network that isconfigured to enable said BS to instruct said relay to transmit saidsignal comprising of said unique identifier of said relay and saidsystem information comprises: said BS to receive a request for ascanning interval from said UE; said BS to send a measurement list tosaid UE which includes said relay; and said BS to instruct said relay tobroadcast said unique identifier and said system information.
 62. Thewireless communication network of claim 50, wherein said wirelesscommunication network that is configured to enable said BS to instructsaid relay to transmit said signal comprising of said unique identifierof said relay and said system information comprises: said BS to instructan attached UE to measure a signal strength of a list of BS and relayswhich includes said relay; and said BS to instruct said relay tobroadcast said unique identifier and said system information.
 63. Thewireless communication network of claim 50, wherein said wirelesscommunication network that is configured to enable said BS to instructsaid relay to transmit said signal comprising of said unique identifierof said relay and said system information comprises: said BS to receivea request from said neighboring BS; and said BS to instruct said relayto broadcast said unique identifier and said system information.
 64. Thebase station (BS) of claim 26, wherein said BS is configured to: checkwhen a UE is authorized to associate with said relay upon detecting saidUE in a coverage area of said relay, wherein said UE is associated withsaid BS; instruct said UE to perform measurements on said relay;instruct said relay to transmit a signal comprising said uniqueidentifier of said relay and said system information; decide when saidrelay meets a criteria required to serve said UE based on saidmeasurements received from said UE; and associate said UE with saidrelay when said relay meets said criteria required to serve said UE. 65.The base station of claim 64, wherein said BS is configured to: informsaid relay about said UE upon said BS deciding that said UE can beserved by said relay; and share UE-related information with said relay.66. The base station of claim 64, wherein said BS is configured toselect said scrambling sequence before transmission of data to saidrelay corresponding to a time instant when said relay forwards data tosaid UE.
 67. The base station of claim 64, wherein said BS is configuredto send instructions regarding pilots to said relay.
 68. The basestation of claim 64, wherein said BS is further configured to considercriteria required for said relay to serve said UE comprising at leastone of: a radio link between said relay and said UE meeting a thresholdquality level; a number of UEs attached to said relay not exceeding athreshold value; a link between said BS and said relay not beingoverloaded; and said UE being present in a CSG of said relay.
 69. Thebase station of claim 64, wherein said BS is configured to control aschedule of transmissions from said relay to said UE.
 70. The basestation of claim 64, wherein said BS is configured to: indicateresources that may be used for transmissions from said relay to said UE;indicate resources that may not be used for transmissions from saidrelay to said UE; and indicate a set of resources, from which said relaymay pick resources for transmissions from said relay to said UE.
 71. Thebase station of claim 64, wherein said BS is configured to sendindications of instructions to said relay periodically.
 72. The basestation of claim 64, wherein said BS is configured to send indicationsof instructions to said relay aperiodically.
 73. The base station ofclaim 64, wherein said BS is configured to send UE-specific informationto said relay needed to decode control information for said UE when saidUE is associated with said relay.
 74. The base station of claim 73,wherein said BS is configured to control power of transmissions betweensaid relay and said UE.
 75. The base station of claim 74, wherein saidBS is configured to control said power of transmissions from said UE tosaid relay by: determining power to be used on a link between said UEand said relay based on reports from said relay comprising measurementsof received power from said UE; and signaling a power level to said UE.76. The base station of claim 75, wherein said BS is configured to sendsaid power level as a range of power levels.
 77. The base station ofclaim 64, wherein said BS is configured to send control signals directlyto said UE.
 78. The base station of claim 64, wherein said BS isconfigured to instruct said relay to transmit said signal comprising ofsaid unique identifier of said relay and said system information by:detecting said UE that is authorized to connect to said relay in avicinity of said relay; and instructing said relay to broadcast saidunique identifier of said relay and said system information.
 79. Thebase station of claim 64, wherein said BS is configured to instruct saidrelay to transmit said signal comprising of said unique identifier ofsaid relay and said system information by: receiving a request for ascanning interval from said UE; sending a measurement list to said UEwhich includes said relay; and instruct said relay to broadcast saidunique identifier of said relay and said system information.
 80. Thebase station of claim 64, wherein said BS is configured to instruct saidrelay to transmit said signal comprising of said unique identifier ofsaid relay and said system information by: instructing an attached UE tomeasure a signal strength of a list of BS and relays which includes saidrelay; and instructing said relay to broadcast said unique identifier ofsaid relay and said system information.
 81. The base station of claim64, wherein said BS is configured to instruct said relay to transmitsaid signal comprising of said unique identifier of said relay and saidsystem information by: receiving a request from said neighboring BS; andinstructing said relay to broadcast said unique identifier of said relayand said system information.
 82. The method of claim 32, furthercomprising: enabling said UE attached with said BS to associate with arelay; said UE making measurements of a signal strength of at least onerelay and neighboring BSs; said UE sending a report to said BS to whichsaid UE is attached, wherein said report comprises of said measurementsof at least one relay that can serve said UE; said BS finding a bestrelay that can be used to serve said UE based on said report; said BSassociating said UE with said best relay when said best relay isattached to said BS; said BS instructing said UE to hand over to aneighboring BS when said best relay is associated with said neighboringBS; and said BS deciding to continue serving said UE directly when nosaid best relay is found.
 83. The method of claim 82, wherein criteriafor said BS to find said best relay comprises at least one of: aproximity of said UE to said relay; a signal strength of a link betweensaid UE and said relay; a signal strength of a link between said relayand said serving BS of said relay; a number of UEs already associatedwith said relay; when said relay is a CSG and said UE is in CSG list ofsaid relay; and when Quality of Service parameters of said UE can be metwhile serving said UE through said relay.
 84. The wireless communicationnetwork of claim 34, wherein said wireless communication network enablessaid UE attached with said BS to associate with said relay byconfiguring said wireless communication network to enable: said UE tomeasure a signal strength of said at least one relay and saidneighboring BSs; said UE to send a report to said BS to which said UE isattached, wherein said report comprises of said measurements of said atleast one relay that can serve said UE; said BS to find a best relaythat can be used to serve said UE based on said report; said BS toassociate said UE with said best relay when said best relay is attachedto said BS; said BS to instruct said UE to hand over to a neighboring BSwhen said best relay is associated with said neighboring BS; and said BSto continue serving said UE directly when no said best relay is found.85. The wireless communication network of claim 84, said wirelesscommunication network is further configured to consider criteriarequired for said BS to find said best relay based on at least one of: aproximity of said UE to said relay; a signal strength of a link betweensaid UE and said relay; a signal strength of a link between said relayand said serving BS of said relay; a number of UEs already associatedwith said relay; when said relay is a CSG and said UE is in a CSG listof said relay when said relay has a CSG list; and when Quality ofService parameters of said UE can be met while serving said UE throughsaid relay.
 86. The base station of claim 64, further configured to:find a best relay that can be used to serve a UE based on a report uponreceiving a report from said UE, wherein said UE is attached to said BS,wherein said report sent by said UE comprises of a measured signalstrength of said at least one relay and neighboring BSs of said at leastone relay that can serve said UE; associate said UE with said best relaywhen said best relay is attached to said BS; and instruct said UE tohand over to a neighboring BS when said best relay is associated withsaid neighboring BS.
 87. The base station of claim 86, where criteriaconsidered by said BS to find said best relay comprises at least one of:a proximity of said UE to said relay; a signal strength of a linkbetween said UE and said relay; a signal strength of a link between saidrelay and said serving BS of said relay; a number of UEs alreadyassociated with said relay; when said relay is a CSG and said UE is in aCSG list of said relay when said relay has a CSG list; and when Qualityof Service parameters of said UE can be met while serving said UEthrough said relay.
 88. The relay of claim 17, wherein said relayconfigured to: search for said best BS; attach to said best BS; send alist of said CSG UEs to said BS; check when at least one of said CSG UEsis attached to said BS; and complete an association procedure with saidBS when at least one CSG UE is attached to said BS, wherein said relayis configured to decode control information sent by said BS to said UE,and wherein said control information comprises of a downlink resourceallocation and an uplink grant for said UE.
 89. The relay of claim 88,wherein said relay is further configured to: measure a transmit power ofsaid UE upon receiving an indication from said BS; report said transmitpower from said UE to said BS; and change a signal power of transmissionbased on an indication received from said BS.
 90. The relay of claim 88,wherein said relay is configured to measure a transmit power of said UEusing a sounding channel.
 91. The relay of claim 88, wherein said relayis configured to vary a transmit power level within a range of powerlevels set by said BS, wherein said power level comprises said range ofpower levels, and wherein said relay has at least one antenna.